FO: Contorta Socks

Behold, the first socks I have knit for myself since 2010. It wasn't on purpose. I just... didn't. Time for True Confessions of an Obsessed Knitter time - I don't actually wear handknit socks that often. (*gasp!*) I know, I know... they're supposed to be the epitome of comfort and luxury and bespoke-ness. But I don't, for some reason. Guess it's another sign of being a process knitter and not caring so much about the finished product.In any case, when I read the Loopy Ewe interview with Carrie of Irish Girlie Knits a few months ago and saw the Contorta socks, I knew I had to have them for ME. I'm also following them up with two more pair of socks for me, bam, bam, so I'll soon have a handknit socks hat trick to start the new year.I knit these out of String Theory Caper Sock, a blissfully soft and squashy blend of 80% merino, 10% cashmere, and 10% nylon, on U.S. size 2 (2.75 mm) needles. The label says for "best results" you should hand wash, but I was reassured in the LYS where I bought it that they could be machine-laundered... which I haven't had the guts to do yet. Has anyone else had any experience with this yarn?The stitch pattern on these is gorgeous and is something I would have never come up with by myself in a million years. I found it easy to memorize the progression of a row fairly quickly, but I repeatedly screwed up which row I was on, meaning I had to keep the pattern close (and that I had some epic frogging sessions because of not paying attention).

Sizing Issues

The sock comes in two sizes, and I debated for a long time which to make. I ended up making the larger size, but as I got towards the toe on the first sock, I had a nagging feeling that, though the sock fit around the leg, it was too large for my foot. I ended up making the sock a little shorter than I would have, thinking that the sock stretching lengthwise to accommodate my foot would pull in the fabric a bit and make them fit better around the foot. It was a nice theory, anyway.I started the second sock and got to the part where I was supposed to quit decreasing for the foot and put the socks in timeout. For two days. I flitted between other projects and seriously thought about casting on a different pair of socks, but since I'm traveling, I only have one set of sock needles with me, and they were in this sock. After being thoroughly mad at all my knitting, I finally decided to bite the bullet and make the second sock smaller, then go back and re-do the first sock. This decision was aided by some math. The two sock sizes in the pattern are purportedly 0.5" different in size, but they are 11 stitches different at a gauge of 8 stitches per inch. This does not compute. This means they are actually closer to 1.5" different in size, since all of those 11 stitches come from the stockinette section on the bottom of the foot. In fact, my sock was measuring larger than what it should have. Bolstered by my calculations, I ended up decreasing 8 stitches more than called for in the larger size and zoomed merrily toward the toe, obsessively trying on as I went. The second sock made my foot much happier, so as soon as it was done, I frogged the foot of the first sock and redid it. Voila!I'm really happy with these and think they're gorgeous, though I wouldn't knit them again in a hurry, given all the frogging I had to do because of not paying attention and the size issue. It would be nice if they came in an intermediate size, but my advice is just to decrease that gusset until you're happy, regardless of what the pattern says.